


runs on happy faces

by bukkunkun



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Adult Fear, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Birthday Fluff, Bonding, Crying, Fix-It of Sorts, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Gen, Lots of Crying, Missing Scene, Parental Donald and Goofy, Platonic Relationships, Team as Family, Time Skips, thank you sora for my life i love you my dear son, this is the most wholesome thing i've ever written
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-27
Updated: 2018-03-27
Packaged: 2019-04-13 16:05:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14115945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bukkunkun/pseuds/bukkunkun
Summary: “Hey, uh, Donald?” He said, and the mage held his wrist.“I know.” He said.They’d made the wrong choice, at least at the start.How difficult it must have been, to be a child and lose everything.A boy grows into a young man through the eyes of his guardians, in the confined little space of their Gummi Ship.





	runs on happy faces

**Author's Note:**

> > march 28 is a national holiday. it's the day my beloved son and saviour sora debuted and therefore is his birthday and i love him so much im so grateful he exists also it will be my ao3 comeback thanks to again my son
>> 
>> — bukkun @ SORA LOVES YOU (@trickscd) [25 March 2018](https://twitter.com/trickscd/status/977846114014568449?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
> 
> **some notes before we get started!** I did become a little self-indulgent in this one, and i injected quite a bit of headcanons into this. hence the canon divergence tag up there. the biggest one here is the fact _i made sora tinier than kairi._ let that sink in a bit. the idea is so cute. blease let me have this. my crops are dying. this fic is also non-romantic at all, and the themes of love that will be mentioned are all love between friends.
> 
> happy 16th anniversary, kingdom hearts! you've done so much for me than you could ever know. i would not be here, writing, if it weren't for you, back then, and even now. i said i would give up writing entirely, but months later, i am back, dealing with my unstable mental health better than before, and it's all thanks to you and the sheer joy you bring me. yes, even if khux comes up with the worst bullshit requirements during proud mode and i don't get to use my perfect, perfect illustrated riku ex medal. i love you. thank you for teaching me friendship and that being edgy isn't the best thing ever and that hey maybe being nice and having friends is a good thing.
> 
> and most importantly, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY SWEET, PRECIOUS SON SORA, I LOVE YOU SO MUCH BABY BOY YOU'VE GROWN UP SO MUCH :^((((( the franchise is now as old as sora may be in kh3. i can't wait for it to come out, killing me instantly.
> 
> this day also marks my comeback to ao3. i hope you'll still have me, even after i have left.
> 
> (this fic comes in a two-parter, the second part is here for people who don't mind a little more highkey soriku.)

It was only a matter of time, really.

The flight between the worlds on the Gummi Ship was often filled with playful banter, bright, delighted giggles and sunny, sunny smiles that made everything feel alright, but Donald and Goofy knew it was only a matter of time, before everything would change.

Like a rubber band pulled too taut, a rich, sturdy tapestry with a single frayed edge—they knew the little boy they were travelling with would snap.

“I’m glad we got Pinocchio back to his dad.” Sora said, as was his wont to do when they finished an adventure in a world. Goofy hummed in agreement, but he didn’t turn to look at Sora—he was at the wheel, this time. Beside the boy, Donald nodded absently, inspecting the dials and the gauges on his side of the ship.

Really, it was a means to distract himself, Donald had to admit. That meeting with his friend Riku was definitely rattling, and with the way the light seemed to be just that bit dimmer in Sora’s eyes told him and Goofy that the boy may be close to breaking down.

“I hope they’ll be okay.” Sora looked down at his hands on his knees, and Donald saw their fuel begin to turn downwards. He looked towards Goofy, who nodded at him, and slowed down. “I hope… they’ll be able to go home soon.”

“I’m sure they will.” Goofy said, as Donald looked at Sora, holding back his quack of alarm when he saw Sora’s watery eyes. “We’ll seal all the Keyholes an’ stuff—and they’ll be able to get home.”

“Home.” Sora echoed, and sniffled softly. “Family. I miss them.”

“Oh, Sora…” Donald said quietly, as the Gummi Ship came to a complete stop. The boy’s expression crumbled, and he buried his face in his hands.

“Kairi. Riku. _I miss them._ ” His voice wavered in the way it never did before, and Donald got up from his seat to rub his back reassuringly. “I miss them so much. I want to see them again.”

“Aw, shucks.” Goofy got up from his seat as well, kneeling down in front of Sora to gently pry his hands away from his face. The boy was freely crying, sniffling and hiccupping, and his two companions couldn’t help the bittersweet fondness that swelled in their hearts. “It’s okay, Sora. It’s okay.”

Goofy pulled Sora into a warm hug, and the boy began to sob harder— _finally_ , the breakdown Donald and Goofy were waiting for ever since Traverse Town.

He’d been through so much—he lost his home, his family, and now the darkness was threatening to take everything else— _whatever else_ he had left.

Riku, his friend inexplicably tainted by the darkness. Kairi, his friend still missing in the shadows.

Then the Keyblade, that mysterious, otherworldly ethereal thing, chose _him,_ to save _everyone_. The worlds, the lights within them, every single heart that beat across the different realms in whatever part of existence the Light could reach.

Every single heart, even Donald and Goofy’s hearts. The King’s. His friends’. His enemies’.

And Sora was just a _boy._ Barely even a proper teenager. A _child_ , if anything else.

No matter how strong a heart was, no matter how much happiness and light surrounded a heart so strong and pure as Sora’s, dark clouds always followed after a sunny sky.

Even hearts, though like diamonds, do as hearts do, and break.

It was only a matter of time, after all.

The weight of a child in his arms made Goofy remember Max back at home, and all the times he held Max the way he held Sora now, and he could feel warmth in his chest swelling, threatening to spill from his eyes. Donald hesitantly looked at Sora, who soon tired himself out, his sobs melting into tiny sniffles, his face pressed into Goofy’s shoulder, comfortably held in the knight’s arms.

_This ship runs on happy faces,_ he had said before.

Regret tasted like bitter, bitter tears rolling down an innocent face.

“‘M sorry I lost it.” Sora mumbled into Goofy’s vest. “We’re not moving, aren’t we.”

Spoken like a statement, and not a question, but Donald replied anyway.

“Yeah. But it’s okay.”

Sora stiffened up slightly when Donald held his back, but immediately relaxed, and let the mage slip into a gap Goofy made to join the hug.

“Didn’t you say this ship runs on happy faces?” Sora asked quietly.

“I did.” Donald replied.

There was a beat of tense, pregnant silence, before Sora spoke again.

“You’re not getting mad?”

“No.” The mage said, and Sora pulled away from them to look at Donald properly. Donald gave him a smile, and thumbed at Sora’s cheeks to wipe the last of his tear tracks away, surreptitiously inspecting Sora’s puffy eyes. Maybe they should head into Traverse Town for a while to let him sleep. “It wouldn’t be fair.”

“We knew you were holdin’ in some problems by yourself,” Goofy added, and Sora looked up at him. “So it’s okay. We’re all friends, right? If you got somethin’ you’re worried about, you tell us both, and we’ll do what we can to help you out, alright?”

To Goofy, it was like with Max all over again. To Donald, he thought of his nephews making their own name in Traverse Town.

The King told them to follow and protect the key, but they could do more for the boy who held it.

“Thanks.” Sora said shakily, and looked ready to cry again. “I—I…” he sniffled, and wiped at his nose. “I think I’m gonna cry again.”

“Cry as much as you like, Sora.” Goofy said, and Donald nodded.

“And when you’re done, we’ll always turn that frown upside down!”

Sora laughed at that, through the tears that began rolling down his cheeks again, and the Gummi ship thrummed back to life.

“This ship runs on happy faces.” Goofy nodded, “But that doesn’t mean we have to be happy _all_ the time, okay?”

“Okay.” Sora nodded, “Thanks, guys.”

* * *

The flight back to Traverse Town was awkward and silent.

And here, Donald and Goofy thought, things would’ve gone differently. They were supposed to be happy, relieved, even, but after everything that happened, they didn’t know if they could even smile in Sora’s presence.

If they even _deserve_ to be called friends, at this point.

In hindsight, it was a terrible decision—but a terrible decision made from a terrible situation. Donald and Goofy never thought they would face such a conundrum—choosing between duty or friendship had never been a problem, considering friendship _and_ duty, then, came hand in hand.

But when the Keyblade chose Sora’s friend, they were forced to make a choice.

Obedience to Crown and King—

Or to stay with a dear friend.

Goofy watched Sora cling onto Kairi like a lifeline, their faces buried in each other’s necks, and his heart sank.

“Hey, uh, Donald?” He said, and the mage held his wrist.

“I know.” He said.

They’d made the wrong choice, at least at the start.

How difficult it must have been, to be a child and lose everything.

“We’ll apologise later.” Donald said. “Let them hug it out first.”

Goofy looked back at Sora and Kairi, and he realised the boy had fallen asleep. The redhead had gently manoeuvred the boy into her lap, cradling him tenderly. There was a conspicuous wet patch on her shirt.

“Oh, hello.” Kairi smiled at him, though her eyes were puffy and her cheeks were wet. “Thank you for saving us.” She said, “I’m Kairi. But I think Sora already told you that.”

Goofy gave her a kind smile. “He did.” He replied. “I’m Goofy. That’s Donald over there, flyin’ us.”

Honestly, it was a miracle at all that they could fly. No one was really smiling, but there they were, en route to Traverse Town without issue. Cid really outdid himself this time.

“Ohh.” Kairi nodded, and Goofy got up to stand beside her.

“D’ya mind?” He asked, reaching out towards her, and she shook her head. He gave her a smile, and wiped her cheeks dry with his thumb.

“Oh, thank you.” She said, sniffling lightly. “Thanks for taking care of Sora the whole time. Me and Riku—back on the island, it was always just us, so…”

Goofy hesitated at that. Taking care of Sora, she said, but it didn’t really feel like they did a satisfactory job at it.

Not when they left behind _an actual child,_ in a dangerous place like Hollow Bastion, _alone._

And they hadn’t even apologised for it. Not properly. Not yet.

“Thanks for caring for him too,” Goofy said instead, and Kairi’s smile was sad and understanding. “You and Riku are good friends to him.”

“Are we.” Kairi said quietly, looking down at the sleeping Sora on her lap. “Somehow, I think you and Donald are better at it than we were.”

_We were_ , she said, and Goofy thought of Riku, the angry, lost— _frightened_ —boy they were forced to leave in Hollow Bastion.

Alone, with that Ansem man.

“Are we.” He echoed her words, and Kairi huffed softly.

“Sora doesn’t deserve this.” She said, and Goofy couldn’t agree more. “He needs some rest, before you go.”

“Yeah.” Goofy said, and stroked Sora’s hair. “But you know, Kairi, Sora loves you both very much. You, and Riku—he’s travelled far and wide for you two.”

Kairi’s eyes welled up with tears, and she bit her lip.

“We’ve seen how hard he looked for you both.” Goofy continued, patting Kairi’s cheek. “If he loves you that much, then it means you’ve been good friends to him.”

Kairi couldn’t hold back her tears, but Goofy had his gloves ready. From the pilot’s seat, Donald smiled at them sadly, but stayed quiet.

Kairi cried into Goofy’s glove quietly, holding onto his finger with a weak grip, and Goofy simply let her let it out, stroking her head. When she had finally calmed down, sniffling, she looked down at Sora.

“We were—me and Riku, we were supposed to take care of him.” She said, “But look—look at what we’ve done.”

“He doesn’t blame you.”

And though he loathed to admit it, he knew, Sora doesn’t blame him or Donald for leaving either.

“But he _should_.”

“Sora loves you.” He said, and it felt odd to realise he needed to hear it too. “Sora loves his friends, Kairi. And that includes you.”

“And you two, too.” She said, squeezing his finger. Goofy blinked at her, and she offered him a smile. “I don’t know what happened between the three of you, but it doesn’t take much to know something did.”

An insightful child, this young Kairi was.

“Yeah.” He nodded, “We should really apologise to him.”

“But not now.” Kairi nodded, and he huffed softly. “It’s okay. I’m sure Sora understands.”

“Y’know, knowing him, he would.” Goofy shook his head. “We’ll get you home, Kairi. You, and Sora—you’ll be able to go home soon.”

Kairi faltered, and deflated. “What about Riku?”

What about Riku, indeed. Even Donald didn’t know what to do about him—about the whole mess of him being so intimately tangled with Ansem. Without the King, neither of them knew what to do— _how_ to save him was something completely unknown of, but somehow, deep in Goofy’s heart, he knew Sora would find a way.

Just as he found a way to bring the Keyblade back to his heart.

Still, it was unfair to Kairi if he had simply blindly told her to believe. It was the last thing he should be doing right now.

“To tell you the truth,” he said, “I don’t know.” He said, and the two of them looked down at Sora.

“He loves Riku too.” Kairi breathed. “He won’t stop until he finds a way.”

“I know.” Goofy replied. “And that’s what I’m counting on.”

Kairi blinked at him, and he laughed softly. “Then I’ll count on it too.”

“Thanks.” Goofy nodded, “And keep smiling, Kairi. This ship…” he paused, and laughed softly. “Runs on happy faces.”

A true, warm smile crossed Kairi’s face as she nodded.

“I think, somehow, I’ve heard that phrase before.” She said, “But every time I hear it, it never fails to make me smile.”

Finally, Goofy’s mouth widened to a grin. “I’m glad, a-hyuck.” He nodded. “C’mon. Let’s get back to Leon and the gang to see what’s up.”

* * *

It would be a long, long time until the were together in a Gummi Ship again, but this time things were different.

For starters, Sora could finally properly reach the controls.

Donald could deny to hell and back the fact that he had almost cried at the sight of Sora at the controls, now much taller and a little older than before, but Goofy knew his old friend. He knew that just like he was, Donald was unspeakably proud to see Sora grow. To see him blossom from a little gangly boy a few inches shy from even Kairi’s height, to this young man ready to take on the greatest darkness the worlds had ever known—again.

He wasn’t a child anymore—at least, not as young and naive as he used to be—but that didn’t mean that Donald and Goofy could leave him to himself. Not ever again.

Apologies were washed away in joyful tears and muffled ‘thank-you’s in messy hugs at The End Of The World, in sterile white pods in a building and home of neverending dusk.

“ _I love you both_ ,” Sora had said, hugging them _tight_ , before they entered a door they would never come out from ever again, “ _You’re two of my dearest friends, and I will always love you._ ”

Nothing would ever change that, and nothing ever will.

“You mean it?” Sora had stars in his eyes that twinkled far brighter than any world in the realm of light, and Donald and Goofy nodded. He let out a hooting cheer, and settled down in the seat in front, taking hold of the controls in such a giddy way that only a child could have done it.

His body had aged, his strength had grown, but his heart was still in the same place—innocent, kind, uncorrupted, even while they had wandered the deepest darkness in all the worlds.

“Just don’t crash us, okay?” Donald tried to sound standoffish, he really did, but Goofy laughed at his attempt anyway. “And keep your eyes in front of you! I don’t want you scratching the hull or the wings or—”

“I’m sure Sora knows to be careful,” Goofy, ever the diplomat, said reassuringly, and it really did seem Sora wasn’t listening—the euphoria of finally flying put the most beautiful smile on his face.

Huffing haughtily, Donald plopped down onto the seat at Sora’s right, and Goofy took the one to his left.

“Off to worlds unknown!” Sora beamed at them, and his friends smiled back.

The Gummi Ship was at optimum power levels, and it was hardly surprising why.

The ship ran on happy faces, and Sora’s smile shone like the sun.

There was no fear, now, no hesitation—they were going to travel again, and they were going the save the world again, and Donald and Goofy would follow Sora to the ends of the world and back, if that was what it took.

* * *

The second time the worlds had been saved, they hadn’t needed a Gummi Ship to get home. They got to thank Naminé, and at the end of it all, Sora had his friends back, and there was that brief moment of respite where they could all just simply _breathe_ again.

Their adventure in the Datascape was like deja vu, but Donald and Goofy enjoyed reliving the past they shared with Sora. While they waited for their friend to come back to them, they made a new one all over again, and while they knew their efforts would be moot, they treated the Data Sora the way they should have a year ago.

And so, the heartless collection of bits and bytes grew a heart, and it was thanks to the love they held in their heart for their Sora.

And it was because of that, that told them of Ventus, Terra and Aqua’s fates, and with some soft words between Data Riku and King Mickey, it was time to call for Sora and Riku to fight again.

“Hey, did you know?” Data Sora said in the silence of King Mickey’s study as Donald and Goofy got ready to head off to Yen Sid’s tower with their King. The two of them looked up at the boy, and Donald cocked his head. “There’s still some stuff here me and Riku know we haven’t talked about!”

“Riku and I, Sora.” Data Riku deadpanned, but his tone was gentle as his touch on the other’s shoulder. He looked at Donald and Goofy apologetically. “I know you’re busy. Sorry he’s a little… excited.” He said, “We’re both thankful you restored us to store all the other journals’ data and keep it safe, but—”

“You didn’t lemme finish, Riku!” Data Sora pouted, shoving the other aside to beam at Donald and Goofy. “Guess what! I know Sora’s birthday!”

“S-so do I!” Data Riku stammered, and playfully, Data Sora began to bicker with an increasingly flustered Data Riku.

Outside, Donald and Goofy blinked at them in surprise.

Oh, that was right—they had never asked about that, had they?

* * *

Riku was named Master, and Sora left for a long, quiet journey by himself back to the realm of sleep. Mickey had a lot to explain for himself, but once the air had been cleared, it was back to Donald and Goofy sitting at the porch of the Mysterious Tower, quietly thinking about a special little day that seemed so far away and impossibly close.

They’d been friends for over a year—to think they’d missed that one special day one special boy was born was almost unacceptable.

By the time Sora came back, smelling of warm cotton candy and vibrant fantasies and cookies and kittenish puppies, Donald and Goofy had already decided what they were going to do.

* * *

It was the day after Sora took care of things with Sully and Mike, and chased off the Unversed and the Heartless from Monsters, Inc., when his birthday rolled around, and luckily, as fate would have it, Disney Town was holding the Dream Festival.

Perfect time for a celebration, Donald and Goofy thought, as Donald took his turn at the wheel. Sora, as he often did, pouted out the window whenever he wasn’t driving, but his pout melted away into wide, open surprise as Donald brought the Gummi Ship close to Disney Town.

“That’s…” he breathed, as visible from outside the world, balloons spelling out ‘ _HAPPY BIRTHDAY SORA_ ’ floated peacefully above rolling green hills, a hodgepodge of colour that could never compare to the technicolour brightness of Sora’s heart.

“It’s the Dream Festival right around now.” Donald said, as Sora whirled around to look at him and Goofy.

“We’d never gotten the chance to ask you about it, since we’d been so busy,” Goofy continued, “But some friends of ours had the right idea in tellin’ us what’s what.”

“Guys…” Sora’s hands shot up to his quivering lips, and the warmth that swelled in his heart threatened to spill from his eyes.

“We thought we’d prepare ya a little somethin’.” Goofy shrugged. “Riku an’ Kairi an’ the King, they’re all there right now, since we kinda asked ‘em to help out prepare.”

“Daisy had suggested we take a break,” Donald added, “And we decided we should do it, celebrating you.”

Sora laughed softly, wiping tears from his eyes, and his two friends got up to pull him into a warm hug.

“Oh, Sora.” Donald sighed, “You’ve grown up so much, it really feels like it was just yesterday when we first met you.”

“You’re way taller than Donald now!” Goofy chuckled, and Donald pinched his side, earning him bright laughter from his old friend. “But you’re still smaller than me, a-hyuck.”

“Thanks, guys.” Sora’s voice shook with a kind of warmth that seemed to permeate even into Donald and Goofy’s hearts. “I—I’d been… I’d been thinking about a lot of things, I’d just… forgotten.” He laughed softly, and squeezed them both just a fraction tighter. “I’d even missed one, when I was asleep.” He huffed, shaking his head. “I used to look forward to it every year. I’d get so excited to see all my friends, have a get-together…”

“We can do it now,” Goofy said, pulling away to dry Sora’s tears with his glove. Donald reached up to tug at the corner of Sora’s mouth, and the teen laughed brightly. “Just take a short break, take a rest in the Dreams Festival.”

“Xehanort can wait, he’s been waiting for years, anyway.” Donald winked, and Sora couldn’t help but giggle. “You ready to go?”

“Yeah.” Sora nodded, “Really, though—thanks, guys. You’ve made me really, really happy.”

Donald and Goofy smiled back at him.

He’d made them happy, too—in the times they spent together, the bond they shared. They watched Sora grow up from a child to a strong, powerful young man—a Keyblade Master in his own right. He’d gone from a gangly, awkward little thing to the saviour of worlds, and with their third journey underway, they knew he could only keep rising from where he started.

He would save everyone. He would be the one to defeat Xehanort, and he was going to do it with a smile on his face, and his heart on his sleeve.

For he was who so loved all the worlds, and all the hearts in it.

He loved it so much that he would live his whole life for the sake of every single crystalline heart that beat to the rhythm of Kingdom Hearts, the light of all the worlds, all sharing the same sky.

“You’ve made us happy, too.” Donald said.

They had promised at the beginning to follow the Key, and at the end, loved a simple, normal boy who had enough heart to save the worlds, and all who lived in them.

Sora beamed at them, and despite the looming threat of darkness, they knew—everything would be alright in the end.

No prophecy of the expiration of light, no single, powerful man of the darkness, no thirteen darknesses that overpowered the light could extinguish the hope Sora carried with him, and they were so grateful for that.

As they made the descent to Disney Town, Donald and Goofy thought of that special Million Dreams Award they had already prepared for Sora in advance. There was no question that he would win it this year, and Riku and Kairi were to hand it to him themselves.

_Thank you for existing, Sora_ , the plaque said, in Riku’s looping handwriting.

_Thank you for the love you’ve given to us._ Continued Kairi’s neat, tiny handwriting next to it, and Donald and Goofy couldn’t agree more.

Sora was the most precious person in all the worlds, they knew. Not the Princesses of Heart, not all the Keyblade Masters and their Masters before them.

Sora.

A plain, clumsy little boy from Destiny Islands, destined for a fate much greater than anyone could ever think possible.

“Happy birthday, Sora.” Donald and Goofy said, before they stepped out of the castle hangar and into the corridors where they knew all their friends were gathered, and Sora stopped, turning to look at them. He smiled at them both brightly, and held their hands.

“Thanks,” he said. “Thank you for making my life the best one it could be.”

**Author's Note:**

> when you're feeling down, always remember that sora loves you and there will always be hope, that light that never goes out. 
> 
> thank you so much for existing.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [the day that never came](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14116092) by [bukkunkun](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bukkunkun/pseuds/bukkunkun)




End file.
